Amalgamating-machine



(No Model.)

D. CALDER & J. D. MAGLAY.

AMALGAMATING MACHINE. No. 371,031. Patented Oct. 4. 1887;

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DAVID CALDER AND JAMES DUNN MAOLAY, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

AMALGAMATlNG-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 371,031, dated October4, 1887.

Application filed April 21, 1886. Serial No. 199,643.

To all whom it may 007006772:

Be it known that we, DAVID CALDER and J AMES DUNN MAGLAY, citizens ofthe United States, residing at Louisville, in the county of Jeffersonand State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Amalgamating-Machines; and we do de-' clare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invent-ion, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and usethe same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and toletters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form apart of thisspecification.

Figure 1 of the drawings is a representation of a vertical section.partly in section. Fig. 3 is a transverse longitudinal section. Fig. 4is an end elevation. Fig. 5 is a view of the corrugated or roughenedplates A and O.

Our invention has relation to a machine for separating gold, silver,850., from their oresor earths comprised in part of such ores by theprocess known as amalgamation with metallic mercury, and the inventionconsists in the construction and novel combination of parts, as will behereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.i

The objects of the invention are to cheaply and effectively accomplishthe amalgamation of gold of exceeding fineness as regards divisibilityof particlcs,which, by existing forms of machines, has been heretoforelost; and to so construct the machine that the subdivided ores o'rearths, composed in part of such metalbearing ores or gold-bearingsands, after being mixed with water in a suitable form of receptacle orhopper, are compelled to pass through a body of metallic mercurycontained in a suitably shaped receptacle, subjected while passing to acutting, turning, rubbing, and grinding motion or movement produced by aslight reciprocating or semi'rotative'motion imparted to the movableparts of the machine itself, which I will now proceed to describe.

Referring by letter "to the accompanying drawings, A designates arectangular or other suitably-shaped block or receptacle, which may bemade of wood or of a metal not subject to the action of metallic mercuryor its salts.

Fig. 2 is a plan view,

(No model.)

size of the opening passing through the block I or receptacle should begoverned to a certain extent by the material operated on. The upper ortop end of the block or receptacle A is (if formed of wood) covered by asuitablyshaped plate, A, provided with an opening, A of the same shapeand size as the opening A, passing through the block A. The lower end ofthe block or receptacle A is provided or fitted with a hardened plate, Athe exterior surface of which is roughened or corrugated. This roughenedor corrugated plate serves as a rubber or grinder, being opposite andnear to a similar plate, A secured to the bottom of the box or chamberB. The plate A is also provided with an opening, A*, through it, tocorrespond exactly to the opening A, terminating at the lowerend of theblock or receptacle A, in order that the passageway through the block orreceptacle may be continuous.

B designates any suitably-shaped box or chamber, the joints of which aremade watertight,and said box or chamber is ofa width sufiicient topermit the free admission of the block or receptacle A, the sides ofwhich are, however, in position close to the side walls of the box orchamber. This box B may be composed of either wood or metal; but if ofmetal it should be of that character not acted on by metallic mercury orits salts. ber B is provided one or more rows of perforations, G, whichserve as exit-ways. The perforated end pieces divide the box or chamberB into a receptacle in which is suspended the block or receptacle A. Afalse bottom, B, serves to form beneath'the bottom of the blockretainingchamber and the bottom of the box proper a passage-way for the materialpassing from the back end of the/machine to the front exit by way of thespace 6 between the two bottoms, and thence out by the forward part ofthe At the ends of the cham- ICO machine at the exit b to a properwaste-dump.

The openings or perforations G are placed sufficiently high in each endWall of the blockretaining chamber B from the bottom of the chamber toprevent waste of the mercury should the machine be too rapidlyreciprocated. The perforations 0 empty into troughs or basins D, one ateach end, outside of the chamber. In case the mercury should at any timebe thrown out through the opening 0 the troughs D will catch and hold ituntil it can be placed back into the inner chamber, B. If deemeddesirable, asmallpipeconnection may convey the mercury back into itsproper place in the inner chamber, B.

O designates a hardened, roughened, or corrugated plate of any suitablemetal secured to the false bottom B of the chamber B, and this plate 0is directly opposite and parallel to a like-shaped roughened plate, 0,secured to the lower end of the block or receptacle A, as shown at A".Between these two separate plates the material to be amalgamated issubjected to a rolling,rubbing, scouring, and grinding motion of theplates, thereby removing the small particles of earths or ores, scouringand cleaning any foreign or other matter that would prevent thecombination of the ore with the mercury. When clean, the amalgamation ismost certain to be accomplished. The reciprocating or other not toorapid motion imparted to the whole chamber or box B effects a sort ofpumpingaction on the part of the mercury and causes the material to begradually worked out from the interior of the block or receptacle A,beneath the same, between the hardened and roughened plates 0 and O andup through the mercury and out through the perforations or openings 0 ateach end of the chamber B.

Thepockets D D are more especially de signed to catch and hold anymercury that may under any circumstances be thrown out of the chamber,for the reason that any other material falling into said pockets will beof a gravity lighter than the mercury and will flow over the sides orends of the pockets, while the other matter and exhausted ore, &c., willflow off by way of the passages b and b E E designate two or more strongstuds or columns, which may be preferably made from cast-iron. These maybe in any way strongly and rigidly attached to the frame-work of themachine at each side of the rolling or reciprocating chamber B. At thesame time the block or receptacle A is rigidly secured to and suspendedfrom the top ends of the columns by any suitable form of brace or clamp,E. This brace or clamp is made up of any number of like or similarplates, or in any other manner to obtain a like adjustable result.

F designates any suitable form of base or frame-work, composed in mostcases of strong and well-seasoned hard-wood timber, It is essential thatthis part be well and strongly made. To this base or frame-work aresecured the lower ends of the columns E E. Upon the base or frame-work Fis properly constructed a track or tramway, upon which or between whichoperate the wheels H of the machine, which prevent the machine fromleaving the track while being reciprocated. This track is either aregular tramway of iron rails and the wheels flanged truck-wheels, or itis of light bar-iron, with which plain tread truck-wheels are used. Infact, any suitable form of truck may be used in this connection.

The line as x is used in the illustration to designate the height withinthe chamber B and receptacle A of the metallic mercury. This height can,however, be varied to suit differing conditions and materials.

J J designate a simple form of fork, in which can articulate any sort ofconnecting rod or pitman, by means of which a-not too speedy or suddenreciprocating motion may be imparted to the chamber B on the rollers orwheels or other mechanical equivalent.

The mode of operation is as follows: After having properly secured thestrong framing and having built a suitable waste-trough for leading awayfrom the machine the exhausted material, and after seeing that properdistance is had between the hardened plates A O, the chamber is thencharged with metallic mercury to a height near to the dotted line m as,a conduit or pipe, 00, fitting tightly around the upward-projectingflange surrounding the opening A, which pipe can extend some distanceabove the top of the machine and may terminate in a hopper into whichthe crushed ore or earth is fed to the chamber, a stream of water beingalso directed into the same hopper. The machine having been charged withmetallic mercury, is then slowly and steadily moved to give it any ofthe movements hereinbefore described at the rate of from thirty to sixtydouble strokes per minute. The ore and water, running down the feed-pipeor chute,enters the block A, passes down into and through the body ofmercury therein contained, and each separate particle of the material isturned, revolved, and rubbed one against another in a manner that cleansany dirt or oxides from the surface of the gold particles thereincontained. At the commencement the alternate strokes imparted to themachine tend to produce a partial vacuum, the mercury acting as apiston, causing the ore or earth-bearing ore to be drawn under the blockA, where it is subjected to a still further rolling, cutting, twisting,scraping, scouring, and grinding between the oppositelyadjustedroughened and hardened plates. After the ore becomes worked throughbeneath the block A the ore will,from its lightness and freedom fromweight of the column of ore and water extending from the feedhopper,float up through the mercury surrounding the exterior of the block A,and then out through openings Oat each end of the chamber B into troughsD D, exterior box, B and passages b b to the waste-dump.

' It will be readily seen that the gold-bearing ore or sandy earthcontaining such gold will be saved by this machine. All greasy or oxidized gold not taken up by mercury in other machines,where the ore isonly stirred around with the mercury, will be caught by this machine byreason of the fact that the ore earth being treated or passing throughthe mercury is continually, until it gets from under the block A,ground, turned, and mixed under a pressure equal to the height of thecolumn of mercury, and is forced through the mercury and cannot at anytime until it leaves from beneath the block float up and off by itsgreater buoyancy, and at the same time the gold is scoured or cleanedduring its passage. In existing forms of machines, wherein thegoldbearing quartz or earth is simply triturated in the mercury, ittends to rise and does rise in the mercury and float off to thewasteheap,

and is lost, or at least not saved.

One of the essential features in the operation of this machine is this,that the material to be treated is constantly under a pressure that canbe varied by raising or lowering the hopper through which it is fed andincreasing or decreasing the distance between the plates A and G.

To obtain the gold it is only necessary to take out the charge ofmercury within the chamber B between the two perforated partitionsthrough any suitable door or opening, and subject such mercury to adistillatiomthe mercury distilling over while the gold, 8m, remain inthe retort.

One great advantage in this machine is that it is unnecessary to stop to(what is termed) clean out. The old charge can be taken out in a veryfew minutes and a new charge supplied and proceeded withwhile the oldcharge is being retorted. In some of the existing forms ofamalgamating-machines the work of cleaning out is a slow and not aninexpensive undertaking. v

The state of the art shows that amalgamating-chambers have beenconstructed with orefeeds discharging below the level of the mercury;that amalgamating-chambers have been made movable, and that the overflowor discharge has been arranged above the surface of the mercury.Consequently we can make'no broad claim to said points. The movement ofthe corrugated surfaces over each other releases the particles of metalin the ore, and by the rubbing and scouring action of said surfaces theparticles are polished, so that they readily unite with the mercury toform an amalgam.

Having described this invention, what we claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent,

1. The combination, with the ore-feed provided with the rubbing-platesecured toits lower end, of the amalgamating-chamberhaving the outlet 6the box B, provided with the roughened rubbing-plate, the perforationsO, and troughs D, and forming the open passage b with the floor of thebox,'and means for re ciprocatiug the amalgamating-chamber,substantially as specified.

2. The combination, with the amalgamating-chamber having the outlet 22and false bottom B, forming a passage, b, between itself and the truebottom of the said chamber, which is provided with the perforations O,of the troughs D, the ore-,feed block A, having the feed-passage A, therubbing-plate secured to the lower end of said block, and the rubhing-plate secured to the false bottom B, substantiall y as specified.

In testimony whereof we aifix our signatures in presence of twowitnesses.

